Beth Laster

Capital One’s $35B All-Stock Merger With Discover Would Make Capital One The Largest U.S. Credit Card Issuer, & Could Challenge Visa/Mastercard By Shifting Its Customers To Discover’s Network. The DOJ Found No Reason To Block The Deal, & The Federal Reserve & OCC Have Given The Final Approval. But Critics Warn Of Higher Fees & Credit Costs.

…

Scientists Using JWST Detected The Strongest Signs Of Life Outside Our Solar System On Exoplanet K2-18b, Detecting High Levels Of Dimethyl Sulfide And Disulfide 1000sX Higher Than Earth’s. These Compounds, Made By Earth’s Marine Phytoplankton, Suggest K2-18b Could Be A Hycean World Teeming With Life, But More Data Is Needed To Confirm Life.

…

Pope Francis, Who Died On 4/21/2025 At 88, Will Be The First Pope Buried Outside The Vatican Since Leo XIII In 1903. He’ll Be Laid To Rest At Santa Maria Maggiore—Founded In 432, A Year After Mary Was Declared Mother Of God—Rome’s Only Basilica Retaining Its Original Early Christian Form. His Burial Honors His Humility & Deep Devotion To Mary.

China‘s Huajiang Grand Canyon Bridge, Opening In June 2025, Will Be The World’s Tallest Bridge At 2,051 ft Above River Level. Located In Guizhou, The 9,482-ft Steel Truss Suspension Bridge Cuts Travel Time From 2 Hrs To 1 Min. Its 22,000-Ton Trusses Weigh 3x Eiffel Towers. Nearly Half Of The World’s 100 Tallest Bridges Are In Guizhou.

Meenakshi Raghavan, 82, Is India’s Oldest Known Female Practitioner Of Kalaripayattu, The Country’s Oldest Martial Art, Originating In Kerala Over 3 Kyr Ago. She Has Trained Students For Decades, Runs The Kalari School Founded By Her Late Husband In 1950, Performs Occasionally, And Inspires Many With Her Lifelong Dedication And Discipline.

…

NASA’s Curiosity Rover Found The Largest Organic Molecules On Mars To Date—Decane, Undecane, And Dodecane—In Cumberland Rock. These Fatty Acids May Hint At Ancient Life Or Natural Processes. Found In Gale Crater, Once Lake-Filled, The Discovery Boosts Hopes Of Finding More Complex Signs Of Life And Supports Returning Samples To Earth For Deeper Study.

US Scientists Say They’ve Found A New Color—“Olo,” A Vivid Blue-Green—By Firing Laser Pulses Into 1 Eye Of 5 People, All With Normal Color Vision, Stimulating Only M Cone Cells (Green) Out Of The Eye’s 3 Types: S (Blue), M (Green), And L (Red). This Rare Activation Created A Color Unseen In Nature, Possibly Aiding Color Blindness Research.

…

A Juvenile Himalayan Frog (Amolops Himalayanus), First Found In India In 1888, Was Spotted For The First Time In Tibet During A Pest Survey. Known Only In India & Nepal, It Has, E.G., A Black Stripe From Snout To Ear. This Is The World’s First Juvenile Record With Verified Photos. DNA Confirms Its Identity, Hinting At Cleaner Streams.

…

MICrONS Researchers Mapped The World’s Most Detailed Brain/Mammalian Brain Wiring, Revealing 200k+ Cells, 4km Of Axons & 523M Synapses In A Cubic MM Of A Mouse‘s Visual Cortex. 150+ Scientists Used AI, 3D Models, And Microscopy To Reveal New Neuron Behaviors, Aiding Studies Of Brain Function And Disorders Like Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, And Autism.

Scientists Filmed A Live Colossal Squid (CS)—Earth’s Heaviest Invertebrate —For The First Time, 100 Yrs After Its Discovery. Known For Having The Largest Eyes Of Any Animal, The 30 cm Juvenile, Spotted At 2,254 Ft Near Antarctica Using An ROV, Offers Valuable Insights Into Its Anatomy & Behavior. NZ‘s Museum Holds The Only Complete CS Public Display.